backwards??

[natacsha]

Hi girls! You ever notice how female clothing is backwards from mens clothes? It's contradictory to everything we do in life! the buttons are left handed and the zippers are left handed!! this drives me nuts!!! why is this?? Don't get me wrong, it's actually cute watching my left hand try so hard to be right that it's just all wrong :doh:.. but really..why is this? some kind of attempt for society to indoctrinate the female species into an opposite way of life? thanks girls! :battingeyelashes: XOXOXO

[Joan_CD]

I think it dates back to the middle ages when the servants would dress the lady of the house. Since they were standing opposite them, the buttons would be on the "right" side. At least that's what I was told!

[darla_g]

put on a few woman's blouses and you get used to it

[AllieSF]

You ever stop to think that maybe it is us males that are backward?? It is cute though when I put on a male belt and want to put it on in reverse like women do and the same goes for the buttons.

[Jessica Keys]

Ya, and on US boats the steering wheel is on the right side of the boat and in New Zeland and Australia the boat steering wheel is on the left side.
What's gurl to do??

[natacsha]

I think it dates back to the middle ages when the servants would dress the lady of the house. Since they were standing opposite them, the buttons would be on the "right" side. At least that's what I was told!

Hi Joan! who told you this? lol That actually makes sense....but how could it carry through all the way to these days...worldwide?? I suppose it could but it seems a stretch doesn't it? I don't know. I think there's something else goin on here..:raisedeyebrow: XOXOX

[natacsha]

You ever stop to think that maybe it is us males that are backward?? It is cute though when I put on a male belt and want to put it on in reverse like women do and the same goes for the buttons.

Hey Allie Lol I was thinking that but it was too much to type and the reality is that neither is really backward. I actually forgot how to put my male belts on...and I wear them fairly frequently. really :/

[Cheryl T]

You ever stop to think that maybe it is us males that are backward?? It is cute though when I put on a male belt and want to put it on in reverse like women do and the same goes for the buttons.

You mean there's a male and female way of putting on a belt? I always just threaded it through to match the overlap on the zipper. If that came from the left then the buckle was on the left and so on....

[AllieSF]

We learn things new everyday. From what I learned, and it could be wrong, a male threads his belt to the left while a female threads her belt to the right. But, I have also seen women thread it on the male side. Anyway, who looks at belts when we have the total outfit to analyze?

The forgetfulness/confusion with belts, zippers and buttons is like driving a manual transmission car all the time (I do) and then needing to drive an automatic transmission car. My left foot (right foot for you other side of the pond drivers) is always pawing for the clutch petal when I come to a stop.

[Tracii G]

I always run the belt to the right LOL

[Sammy777]

I think it dates back to the middle ages when the servants would dress the lady of the house. Since they were standing opposite them, the buttons would be on the "right" side. At least that's what I was told!
This is actually the most commonly accepted reasoning for woman's clothing being "backwards".
The servants were also the tailors back then. So in order to make it easier for them to dress the lady of the house they would reverse the buttons so that to them they were correct.
Female peasants, servants, ect. clothing was the same as mens.
When nicer better made clothing become available to a broader range of people that was just something that continued along with it.
About the only piece of clothing that has wholeheartedly upheld that tradition is the womans button down blouse.
Yes sometimes you will see the occasional pair of pants or skirt with a left sided flap, but most are on the right, same as mens, these days.

[Senneca]

I guess since I am left handed, it's not hard at all, it just seems more natural to me.

[RachelB.]

Buttons were carved from ivory or bone way back when. They were susposed to be expensive. Only the upper class had clothing with buttons. Others wore pull over or tunic style tops. The buttons on womens clothes were placed to make it easier for those assisting her to fasten them. Don't know where that all comes from, probably read it somewhere!!

[Joan_CD]

Gee, it's starting to sound like I was right!!! : )

[DeeArel]

The convention is slowly becoming unisex. It is becoming rare to find slacks with the zipper on the woman's side. When will they eradicate the button difference.

[busker]

I think if you look a little harder you will find many women's pants also have the zipper flap on the left just like the guys. Patterns though will have the flap on the right (correct) side for women's pants. Also, a lot of size tags you will find on the opposite side, and they are in sizes 8, 10 12, where men's pants are something like 34/30, women's are 18T or 18W, 18PW. That can also be a give-away about whose clothing you are wearing. If your shirt tag says petite it's women's clothing. Also, zippers on pants used to be either on the side or the back or no zipper, but now that clothing seems to be merging, you will probably find more "male" sided things.

[docrobbysherry]

This is actually the most commonly accepted reasoning for woman's clothing being "backwards".
The servants were also the tailors back then. So in order to make it easier for them to dress the lady of the house they would reverse the buttons so that to them they were correct.
Female peasants, servants, ect. clothing was the same as mens.
When nicer better made clothing become available to a broader range of people that was just something that continued along with it.
About the only piece of clothing that has wholeheartedly upheld that tradition is the womans button down blouse.
Yes sometimes you will see the occasional pair of pants or skirt with a left sided flap, but most are on the right, same as mens, these days.
That also helps explain all the back zips on ladies dresses. I KNOW GGs can't ALL be double jointed! Most of those dresses COULD have them on the side if not the front!

[naye]

All my bottoms (skits and shorts) have the flip in the "mans" way, but my blouses are the opposite

[NaomiHikaru]

I honestly don't realize this any more. Although I think what other have said was right, it was from medieval times when women need help getting into their clothes. Things were a lot more poofy back then! Maybe I should find out where I read that, wikipedia maybe.....

[Stephenie S]

No, no, no, no, no.

That's SUCH an androcentric view. It's not the women who have it backward, it's the men's clothing that's done up wrong. I have never understood why men do all their buttons, snaps, and zippers backwards. It sort of reminds me of their thinking. Backwards too.

S

[WyrmQueen]

No, no, no, no, no.

That's SUCH an androcentric view. It's not the women who have it backward, it's the men's clothing that's done up wrong. I have never understood why men do all their buttons, snaps, and zippers backwards. It sort of reminds me of their thinking. Backwards too.

S

It's not about being male-centric. Back then, males would dress themselves which is why the buttons are on a particular side while women, especially nobles, would have their servants dress them.

Women's buttons are the backwards one.

And not all men are backwards in their thinking. That is so sexist and bigoted.

[Rachel Newark]

Posted by AllieSF

"The forgetfulness/confusion with belts, zippers and buttons is like driving a manual transmission car all the time (I do) and then needing to drive an automatic transmission car. My left foot (right foot for you other side of the pond drivers) is always pawing for the clutch petal when I come to a stop. "


Hi Allie

I've driven on both sides of the pond. The pedal arrangement is the same in the US and the UK, we use the left foot for the clutch as well :-). I found the biggest problem was going between and auto and a manual gearbox. I'm used to a manual ( stickshift ? ) and until I learned to tuck my left foot out of harm's way I sometimes pressed down with my left foot when approaching a junction, 'thinking' I was operating the clutch when in fact I was stomping on the brake pedal. Some cars can stop really quickly when you do that !

Hugs

Rachel

[joanna marie]

The difference in male and female button positions is based custom
Women of quality had servants to help them dress so they butto right over left to make it easier for the servant to work them

Men wore swords as a common practice
Male jackets button right over left so that the hilt of their sword did not catch on the jacket opening

Common people copied those styles in their dress

the custom still carries on today

[Beth Wilde]

I have read the same thing about ladies of yesteryear being dressed Joan! Though with belts, the military really drummed in that "the male is always right" (Before any GGs get upset, the pointy (male) end of the belt should be on your right hand side)! :)

[Kate Simmons]

Offhand I'd say because it takes longer so we can enjoy our dressing more. ;):)

[Tina B.]

I had never thought about it it that much, but your right, lets fix it so womens blouses look and work just like a mans shirt, it would be so much easier to put on right, Wait a minute, won't that make them just the same, then I'll only need one wardrobe, since it's all the same, it will be so much cheaper, that having two wardrobes, and no one will be able to tell I'm cross dressed! Wow doesn't sound like much fun to me.
Tina B.

[Julogden]

I read somewhere that originally, all buttons were as they currently are on women's clothing, but men's clothing changed to avoid men's sword handle snagging in the garment opening as they drew their sword from left to right.

Carol

[Foxglove]

Hi Joan! who told you this? lol That actually makes sense....but how could it carry through all the way to these days...worldwide?? I suppose it could but it seems a stretch doesn't it? I don't know. I think there's something else goin on here..:raisedeyebrow: XOXOX

I think once a custom gets started it can last a long time. As for the British practice of driving on the left-hand side of the road, what I heard about that (and I can't vouch for this info) is that it goes back to medieval times. Two guys meeting each other on horseback would pass each other on the left so that they'd have their swords and sword hands between them and their potential assailant.

So why do people drive on the right in the US? Probably because by the time the American colonies were being founded, guns were coming into use, and sure you can shoot somebody from any angle. (I'm making this part up.)

Annabelle

[Melissa_59]

I don't have a problem with the buttons being on "backwards", for some reason I can handle that pretty easily.

Now driving a stick shift in England when you're used to a US car is interesting. The "problem" is that the shift pattern is the exact same, but in the US you'd pull the stick towards your body and push up for 1st gear, but in England (with the wheel on the other side of the car) you push the stick away from your body with the wrong hand and then up to get to 1st gear. Which makes downshifting interesting, because your left hand wants to do the "muscle memory thing" that your right hand would normally do - but it's backwards! (Try miming this yourself to see what I'm talking about)

You won't believe the amazing tunes you can play with a stick shift car when you're not thinking about it and the wheel is on the other side of the car! I call it "death metal" because I'm sure that transmission was never the same.

Melissa

[Frédérique]

You ever notice how female clothing is backwards from mens clothes? It's contradictory to everything we do in life! the buttons are left handed and the zippers are left handed!! this drives me nuts!!! why is this?? Don't get me wrong, it's actually cute watching my left hand try so hard to be right that it's just all wrong.. but really..why is this? some kind of attempt for society to indoctrinate the female species into an opposite way of life?

Maybe, just maybe, women feel WE have it wrong-way-round, and not vice-versa... :doh:

PS – I didn’t realize females were a separate species. You learn something new every day! :heehee:

[linda allen]

That's what I've heard also. I suppose for someone who is left handed, that would be a plus.

[Krististeph]

I like the mild awkward feeling from this:
-- It calls attention to the fact that you are doing something different from normal en drab
-- It is also a trapping of femininity- only feminine clothes are like this.

[Beverley Sims]

A bit like the Brits saying we drive on the wrong side of the road.
We know we drive on the right.:)
The belt problem has always plagued me and I still haven't got it.
All my life I have put a belt on and it depends which hand it is in whether it gets done up right or wrong.
I have always pulled sweaters off myself by crossing my arms and gripping the waist and not grabbing the back of the neck.
A form of patterning by my mother.

[Carla4Guage]

I've also read that mens shirts were buttoned the way they were so as not to get caught when drawing a sword, womens tops were buttoned as they are to make it easier to unbutton their tops when holding an infant and preparing to nurse, or at least that was an explaination given to me. If there is any truth to this explaination; I haven't a clue!

[Jennifer W]

I don't know about belts. I noticed my wife puts hers on the same way I do or maybe I put mine on the same way she does. Either way is fine by me! LOL! And buttons are buttons and I don't care which side they are on, I just button them!

[PretzelGirl]

I guess since I am left handed, it's not hard at all, it just seems more natural to me.

And that makes a great reason for all left handers to be cross-dressers! Well, MTF anyway.